Manufacturers of tank type toilets and replacement parts for those toilets, have in the past, employed a wide variety of techniques and common mechanisms to control the flushing and refill process.
In the flushing and refill process, a manually-operated lever on the toilet holding tank opens a flapper valve in the bottom of the tank. This releases the water from the tank into the toilet bowl, displacing the contents of the bowl through an air lock (a "P" trap) and into the sewer system. After the tank has emptied from the flush, the flapper valve automatically closes, allowing a fresh supply of water to be retained by the tank. Common toilet designs use a float to control the fresh water supply valve. This assembly is located inside the tank. Upon flushing, the float lowers with the water level to a down position causing the water supply valve to open, filling the empty toilet tank and bowl simultaneously. In typical toilet designs approximately 20 percent of the fresh water from the water supply valve is delivered through a tube into the toilet bowl. The remaining 80 percent is discharged directly into the tank. As the tank fills, the float rises with the water to a preset level to an up position causing the water supply valve to close. This stops the filling of both the tank and the bowl.
An examination of prior art involving mechanisms designed to supplement or enhance the operation of common toilets, shows that the primary efforts of these inventions have been directed toward controlling the volume of water within the toilet tank for the purpose of saving water. They do not teach a means for an operator of a toilet to interrupt the flushing and refilling process.
Toilets and toilet control mechanisms suffer from one primary disadvantage: their control is extremely limited. Once the flapper valve has opened and the flushing process has begun, it cannot be easily or quickly interrupted.
The only way to interrupt the flushing and refilling process is to shut off the fresh water supply. Current toilet designs allow two methods of doing this:
METHOD I: The operator can reach down to the exterior water supply valve (not previously mentioned), usually located outside and below the toilet tank. This valve is often referred to as a water stop. It is typically very difficult to reach and is usually either seized (stuck open) or cannot be closed without extraordinary effort. On many toilets the water stop is not installed. This, of course eliminates this method.
METHOD II: The operator can gain access to the water valve and float assembly. The tank lid must be cleared of debris and removed. Then the operator must reach inside the tank, grab the float arm, and manually pull it up to close the water valve. Unfortunately this is a slow and cumbersome process. In addition, when using this method, in order for the valve in the tank to remain closed, the operator must continue to hold the float. Upon letting go, the valve reopens and refilling resumes.
The two methods described, shutting off the water stop and accessing the automatic refill mechanism, are only available if the operator is aware of them. Often it is the case that individuals do not possess this knowledge. Heretofore, neither the toilet manufacturers nor the product distributors have made efforts to make this information known. Nor is there evidence that altered toilet designs are forthcoming that will correct these disadvantages.